Tuesday, October 10, 2007 Fire victims get housing supplies from foundation
A FEW pieces of wood, plywood and galvanized iron sheets do not spell luxury, but for eight families in Sitio Bato, Barangay Ermita in Cebu City, these were gifts from heaven.
The eight families were among the more than 400 families whose homes were damaged by a fire last May.
They were the first group of fire victims to receive free housing materials at the barangay’s chapel during a simple turnover ceremony recently.
The housing materials are part of the disaster assistance project of the Alliance for Land and Livelihood for the Rural and Urban Poor (ALL-R-UP) with funding from the Peace and Equity Foundation (PEF).
ALL-R-UP has identified 34 families, who are unable to rebuild their houses, as beneficiaries of the project.
“Dako ni nga katabang sa kahimtang sa mga biktima sa sunog,” said Ermita Barangay Captain Felicisimo Rupinta during the turnover ceremony (This is a big help to the fire victims).
Temporary
Some of the fire victims live in makeshift homes and tents while others have sought temporary shelter at the barangay sports complex.
Some of the victims have also found shelter in stalls at the Carbon Public Market.
Even though the housing materials for her have yet to arrive, Lourdes Guaves, 47, expressed gratitude to the non-government organizations that are providing the assistance.
Difficult
“Tubag gyud ni sa akong pag-ampo kay di man gyud ko kapabarug sa akong balay nga ako ra,” she said. “Lisud kaayo amo kahimtang sa complex kay di mi katug ug tarong.” (This is an answer to my prayers because I would never be able to rebuild my house on my own. Our living conditions at the sports complex are very difficult. We could not sleep very well.)
Guaves lives with her husband and three children at the Ermita sports complex.
Her children were unable to attend school this year because of the fire. “Wa lang sa nako sila pa-eskuylaha kay lisud gyud kaayo,” she said. (I told them they cannot yet attend school because our situation is very difficult.)
Teresa Fernandez, treasurer of ALL-R-UP and former member of the board of trustees of PEF, said she hoped the assistance would ease the sufferings of the most hard-up of the fire victims.
PEF, which supports projects that seek to alleviate poverty in different communities in the country, gave P150,000 for the disaster assistance project for Ermita fire victims.
